my baby lives in shades of blue
by softiesharpie
Summary: The morning after scene in 3x13 we all deserved.


The first thing Ava became aware of when she regained consciousness was something strong wrapped around her torso and something limp on her legs.

She tensed instinctively before she remembered where she was and instantly relaxed. The previous night had been wonderful. They'd defeated pirates together, drank rum floats together, then Ava had suggested they take it to the bedroom, which of course Sara couldn't say 'no' to, nor did she want to. Ava had been more than little shocked when Sara asked her to stay the night, knowing that the captain preferred one night stands that didn't involve the cuddling they were currently doing.

Sara made Ava feel something she hadn't felt in a long time.

The captain was, no doubt, the most stubborn person Ava had ever met. She despised her at first. She hated Sara's blatant disregard for the rules and authority, and she also hated that Sara wasn't intimidated by her like most of the other Bureau agents were. But, as time started to pass, something shifted. Ava couldn't pinpoint when — she guessed it was after she saved Sara from Mallus's realm — but things started feeling softer between them, more vulnerable. It was no secret that both women were strangers to blatant vulnerability like this.

At first, Ava thought Sara was the complete opposite of her. And, while they may be very different, they had plenty of similarities as well. Ava just wanted to learn more about Sara she wanted to know everything about her, including the small things like; Was Sara a morning person or not? Did she prefer plain black coffee or milk and sugar in her coffee? Did she take awhile to fully wake up or was she immediately on the alert? Ava assumed it was the latter, due to Sara's training in the League.

Ava sighed as her eyes slowly opened, not used to the lack of sunlight. She turned her head to look at the clock and saw that it was still very early, so there was no reason to get up yet. Ava hesitated. Would Sara want to wake up next to her? Sure, last night Sara had been adamant on Ava staying but that was after hours of them exploring each other's bodies. Now that Sara would be levelheaded instead of her mind being clouded over with a pleasurable haze, would she regret asking Ava to stay?

Ava didn't have time to question what she was doing when she felt the weight around her torso tighten before a soft, yet raspy voice whispered "you're thinking too much."

Ava bit her lip and looked down at Sara, who still had her eyes closed and was clearly still half-asleep. What was Ava supposed to say to that? 'Yeah, well... I read your files and I know you don't really do more than one night stands so I've been panicking for the last thirty minutes about maybe leaving before you woke up. And now that you're awake and I'm still here, I don't know what to do'? No.

"Yeah well, overthinking is pretty much my default state." Ava commented offhandedly, yawning as she reached over and turned on the lamp, needing some light so that she wouldn't fall back asleep. She didn't know what she'd do if she woke up and Sara wasn't there. She knew that was an irrational thought, she was on the Waverider so Sara couldn't get very far. But, Ava wasn't one for delaying the inevitable. If Sara wanted her to leave, Ava would rather be told sooner rather than later.

"Well, what are you overthinking about exactly?" Sara asked, more awake now as she opened her eyes and looked up at Ava, blushing as she seemed to realize how close and vulnerable they were now.

"This. Us. If we even are an 'us'." Ava said simply and as much as she wanted to look away, she couldn't break eye contact with Sara. Sara, by far, had the most beautiful eyes Ava had ever seen. They were so blue, so bright and full of life. She didn't know eyes could be that blue until she met Sara. She noticed how Sara's features were more visible now that the lamp was on. Her eyes traced over Sara's seemingly infinite number of freckles, over her cute nose, and over her soft lips — lips that Ava couldn't seem to get enough of last night.

"Well..." Sara yawned, as much as her mind was telling her to pull away, she couldn't bring herself to do so. Ava was so warm, and Sara fit perfectly in her arms. "Do you want there to be an 'us'. Or was this just a one time thing?" At the thought of Ava not wanting them to continue, Sara seemed to tense as if she was preparing herself for rejection.

Ava bit her lip, searching Sara's eyes for anything that would suggest that Sara wanted her to leave. All she saw was vulnerability and a hint of poorly hidden fear. "I want... I want this. You and me." She said after a few moments of silence. There was no use of lying anyways, and if they were going to try this they would need to be honest with each other.

She meant to say more, but she kept getting lost in Sara's eyes. It felt as if Sara was peering into her soul, like she could see everything Ava had left unsaid, like she knew exactly what Ava was thinking. Tentative eyes studied Ava intently. Ava realized that Sara probably had similar, if not the same, worries about where they stood with each other.

"I just... didn't know if you'd be okay with me staying the night." Ava added, her hand subconsciously going to rub Sara's back. The movement seemed to make Sara relax and the hint of fear in her eyes slightly diminish. Ava could feel the scars on Sara's back and was pretty sure she knew where they came from. With their line of work, it was nearly impossible to leave unscathed. Plus, she know of Sara's past.

Sara nodded, her fingertips tracing the sharpe contours of Ava's collarbones, then her shoulders. Ava truly was a work of art. "Well, I did ask you to last night." Sara pointed out, her smile a bit playful. Ava could tell that Sara was just trying to mask her own insecurities.

"I know. But... that was after we... after we did things. And... I know you might've not been thinking straight after that." Ava said, not mentioning that she knew of Sara's tendency to have one night stands instead of more meaningful connections. Even though she'd just been doing her job by reading her files, Ava felt like she knew Sara better than she should this early in their... whatever they were.

Sara nodded, her gaze shifting from where her hand was on Ava's shoulder up to her eyes. "I meant it. I wanted you to stay... I'm glad you're here." She whispered, this kind of vulnerability was knew to her but it surprisingly wasn't uncomfortable. It just felt unfamiliar and new.

Ava smiled, not trying to hide the blush on her cheeks, as her arm around Sara's back tightened. Sara's eyes seemed to shine in this lighting, and Ava felt so lucky to see this softer side of Sara. "And... do you want this to be a one time thing?" She had to ask, needing confirmation that she wasn't the only one with these feelings, wasn't the only one who wanted this to be more than just a fling.

"No... I don't." Sara said. "I want this too." She added and her eyes appeared to soften more as a grin spread across her lips. "But... you have to let me take you out on another date. Preferably one that's not so..." she trailed off.

"Normal?" Ava filled in with a chuckle.

Sara smiled, "yeah. Normal. Clearly... you and I are anything but normal. With our jobs and everything." She pointed out. "I was thinking... maybe somewhere fun?" She said and hummed, feeling warm and giddy with a feeling she hadn't felt in ages. This sort of softness was new for both of them, but she wanted to try to familiarize herself with it with Ava by her side.

"Like a museum?" Ava asked, her eyes lighting up with excitement. And, of course Sara should've known that Ava was the type of person to think museums were fun. Sara wanted to tell Ava that museums weren't really her thing, but she hadn't been to very many of them so she couldn't rule them all out. Plus, they had a time ship. They could go anywhere and anywhen, so maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Anything was worth seeing Ava with that adorable, almost youthful excitement look in her eyes.

Sara realized that she didn't know much about Ava personally. She didn't know her hobbies, what her favourite food was, what her favourite memory was... anything like that. She just knew about Ava from a professional standpoint. She knew how Ava got her job at the Bureau, how long she'd been working there for, what her favourite thing about her job was, and why she wanted to one day be the Director.

Sara wanted to know more.

She wanted to know Ava more than just what was on the surface. She wanted to know everything about her. And maybe... maybe doing something that Ava liked would help with that. Plus, admittedly, Sara loved history so they could maybe go to a history museum. Or, better yet, go to an actual historic place for the day.

"Yeah, like a museum." Sara finally answered her, mirroring Ava's grin. She realized that her cheeks were starting to hurt from how much she'd been smiling and that was a feeling she could definitely get used to.

Ava fully relaxed, content with where they were. "When?" She asked, feeling Sara settle once more with her head on Ava's chest, arm wrapped around her, and her leg over Ava's, preventing Ava from leaving even if she'd wanted to.

"Tonight maybe?" Sara asked and blushed, still pleasantly surprised that there were really doing this. She'd felt a connection with Ava from the start, but she wouldn't have guessed that it would end up here. That she would wake up in Ava's arms and feel safer than she'd ever felt. But now that she had it, she never wanted to let it go.

"Tonight sounds great."


End file.
